The
University of Delaware announced a new partnership with Joseph R. Biden
Jr., the 47th vice president of the United States, that will pair his
long-time work in domestic policy issues with the University’s strengths
in public policy education and research.

Biden will serve as the founding chair of UD’s Biden Institute, a new
research and policy center focused on developing public policy
solutions on issues ranging from economic reform and environmental
sustainability to civil rights, criminal justice, women’s rights and
more. The institute will also convene thought leaders on the most
important issues of the day.

“We’re very excited about this new relationship with Joe Biden, one
of our most distinguished and loyal alumni,” said University President
Dennis Assanis. “His vast experience as a public servant for more than
40 years will bring an important focus to many domestic policy matters
to enhance the broader portfolio of programs within our school of public
policy. His insight and experience will lend invaluable enhancement to
programming, education and research initiatives as the University of
Delaware helps shape the future leaders of our society.”

“Every day of my career in public service has been motivated by the
desire to ensure that every American is treated with dignity and gets a
fair shot,” said Biden. “I am happy to continue that work at my alma
mater, a place that is stamped on my heart. I look forward to working
with a top-notch policy staff at the Biden Institute to continue the
hard work of developing public policy to benefit American families.”

The Biden Institute, which will be part of the University’s School of
Public Policy and Administration, will initially be located at 44 Kent
Way on the University campus in Newark, Delaware.

Assanis said the creation of the Biden Institute will be complemented
by the addition of new faculty, increased enrollment in the school, and
an initiative to expand the school’s offerings in the areas of smart
cities, environment and energy, social justice, and disaster management.

UD School of Public Policy and Administration

With a distinguished faculty and a cadre of dedicated professionals,
the School of Public Policy and Administration is a globally recognized,
comprehensive school that translates scholarship and research into
usable knowledge to inform decision-making and policy, improve
leadership and management and address critical societal needs.

Top-ranked programs include city management, nonprofit management and
public administration and management, and the school offers bachelor’s,
master’s and doctoral degree programs. More than 300 public, private
and nonprofit institutions, locally and globally, use the research
expertise and services of the school each year.

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Vice President Biden

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​Then-Sen. Joe Biden speaks at UD's 1987 commencement.

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As a U.S. senator from Delaware for 36 years, Biden was a leading
architect of domestic policy on some of the most pressing issues facing
the country. Then-Sen. Biden served as chairman or ranking member of the
Senate Judiciary Committee for 17 years, and was a preeminent voice on
criminal justice issues, including authoring both the landmark 1994
Crime Act and the Violence Against Women Act. Biden has worked
relentlessly since the passage of the Violence Against Women Act in 1994
to change the culture around domestic violence and sexual assault, and
protect and strengthen victims’ rights.

As the 47th vice president of the United States, Biden oversaw the
implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which was
integral to rescuing the economy from the brink of another Great
Depression. The Recovery Act added two million jobs to the economy and
made an unprecedented investment in America’s infrastructure. According
to the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, under Vice
President Biden’s oversight, more than $800 billion dollars were
injected into the economy with less than two tenths of one percent
waste, fraud or abuse – making it one of the most efficient government
programs in history.

As vice president, Biden also chaired the Middle-Class Task Force, an
administration-wide effort to improve the everyday lives and
livelihoods of working men and women, and oversaw the administration’s
Skills Initiative to improve federal workforce training programs. He
authored “Ready to Work: Job-Driven Training and American Opportunity,” a
report to the president on how best to ensure American workers are
trained for the jobs of the 21st century.

Biden also led the administration’s efforts to implement meaningful
reforms to reduce gun violence in this country, which resulted in
federal actions aimed at strengthening the background check system and
addressing mental health issues linked to gun violence, among others.

In January, President Barack Obama awarded Biden the Presidential
Medal of Freedom, with Distinction, the highest civilian honor in the
U.S.

Biden is an alumnus of the University of Delaware, Class of 1965.

A special relationship

A frequent visitor to his alma mater, Biden has spoken at four UD
Commencement ceremonies (in 1978, 1987, 2004 and 2014). Last December,
he was a featured speaker at the inauguration ceremony for UD’s new
president, Dennis Assanis.

Biden donated his Senatorial papers to the University of Delaware
Library in 2011, when he also delivered the inaugural James R. Soles
Lecture on the Constitution and Citizenship. In 1984, he was inducted
into the University’s Alumni Wall of Fame.

His wife, Jill Biden, earned her bachelor’s and doctoral degrees from UD, and his sister Valerie is also a graduate.

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The University of Delaware begins a partnership with Joseph R. Biden Jr. to pair his long-time work in domestic policy issues with the University’s strengths in public policy education and research.

Blurb

​The
University of Delaware announced a new partnership with Joseph R. Biden
Jr., the 47th vice president of the United States, that will pair his
long-time work in domestic policy issues with the University’s strengths
in public policy education and research.